WXYZ to launch 10 p.m. newscast on Channel 20 as part of Scripps' $110M purchase of station

Cincinnati-based E.W. Scripps Co., the parent company of WXYZ-TV, closed Monday on the purchase of MyNetwork TV affiliate WMYD Channel 20 in a $110 million cash deal that also includes the purchase of WKBW, Buffalo’s ABC affiliate, from New York City-based Granite Broadcasting Corp.

Along with the deal, WXYZ announced that it will start a local 10 p.m. newscast on WMYD Monday-Friday anchored by Glenda Lewis and Malcolm Maddox beginning tonight. Chief Meteorologist Dave Rexroth with provide weather forecasts and WXYZ Sports Director Tom Leyden will provide sports coverage.

The deal, which has no debt financing and required Federal Communications Commission approval, brings Scripps’ ABC affiliate count to 11, which will reach almost 12 percent of American households, according to a news release.

Scripps now owns 21 stations throughout the country and has a total market share of nearly 14 percent, according to the release.

It creates the second duopoly in the Detroit television market. The other is WWJ-TV Ch. 62, a CBS station, and WKBD-TV Ch. 50, a CW Network affiliate, which are owned and operated by CBS Corp.

“These stations in Detroit and Buffalo will contribute strong cash flow to our core businesses, expand our reach in one of our best markets, and expand our TV footprint in partnership with ABC,” Rich Boehne, Scripps chairman, president and CEO, said in a news release.

Ed Fernandez, Scripps divisional general manager and vice president and general manager of WXYZ, said in a statement that the station is “fortunate that our parent company, E.W. Scripps, has decided to invest deeper in this market.”

“TV20 gives us an opportunity to expand our programming, news, and community service as we take an even bigger role in the rebirth of the city we serve.”

Granite bought WMYD in 1997 for $175 million.

WMYD was formed in 2006 when FOX parent News Corp. created the MyNetworkTV network for stations orphaned by the merger of The WB Network and UPN, which resulted in the CBS- and Warner Bros.-owned The CW Network.

WMYD has a studio in Southfield. Its employees will move to the WXYZ headquarters as part of the deal. Some of the station’s content is produced in Fort Wayne.

Scripps has since 1986 owned WXYZ, the broadcaster’s largest television station, reaching nearly 2.7 million households in the Detroit market.

Scripps (NYSE: SSP) in 2012 reported $160 million in profit from its television stations on $903 million in company-wide revenue ($494 million of which was television).

The company’s financial disclosures didn’t break down by station.

The station first went on the air in September 1968 as independently owned WXON-TV Ch. 62, a UHF station. It was WDWB-TV from 1997-2006.